To help district test coordinators prepare for the 2014-15 school year, ODE has posted the 2014-15 Preliminary Oregon Accessibility Manual (OAM) to http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=487. The purpose of the Preliminary OAM is to provide districts with advance notice on the anticipated polices and requirements that will govern the provision of accessibility supports for the 2014-2015 Oregon Statewide Assessments, including the operational Smarter Balanced assessments in mathematics and English language arts. In addition, please note that due to the timing of the preparations and training for the Kindergarten Assessment, it already contains the final policies and requirements that are in effect for this particular assessment for 2014-15.

ODE will publish an Interim OAM by August 1, 2014 that locks down all policies and requirements that are not specific to the new Smarter Balanced assessments. Once the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium releases its final policies and requirements that will govern the provision of accessibility supports for the Smarter Balanced assessments, ODE will publish a Final OAM.